Review: A Case of Redemption by Adam Mitzner

Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: Gallery Books; First edition (May 14, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1451674791
ISBN-13: 978-1451674798 {Amazon}
Source: Publicist; in exchange for an honest review


Acclaimed thriller author Adam Mitzner returns with the gripping tale of a high-profile attorney recovering from a personal tragedy who’s drawn back into the courtroom—and a media firestorm— in the biggest murder trial in a decade.

Dan Sorensen was once a high-powered New York City defense attorney . . . but that was before a horrifying accident killed the two people in his life who meant the most, plunging him into a downward spiral. As he approaches rock bottom, Dan is unexpectedly offered the opportunity of a lifetime: defend an up-and-coming rapper in a murder trial on the front page of every newspaper. Although his client swears he’s innocent of the brutal slaying of his pop star girlfriend, proving it will not be easy, especially because he’s suspected of bragging about the crime in one of the hottest songs in the country.

Unsure that he’s ready to handle such a high-stakes case, Dan realizes that this chance to save a man he believes has been falsely accused of murder just may be his last and only hope to put his own life back on track and achieve redemption for his past sins. But as Dan delves deeper and deeper into the case, he learns that atonement comes at a very steep price. A powerful and riveting new voice in fiction, Adam Mitzner pulls out all the stops in his follow-up to the highly acclaimed A Conflict of Interest. A Case of Redemption is a gritty, sophisticated thriller that will draw fans of Scott Turow and John Grisham into a world of relentless suspense. {Goodreads}

Goodreads | Amazon

Review

It has taken me awhile to get through this.  I got my review copy back around April, and started reading soon after.  But I’ve had to put it down off and on.  For some reason I just couldn’t get into the story. 


The first almost 3/4 of the book were painful.  Not emotionally, but that kind of painful that books are when you want to like them, but just aren’t that into it.  Keep in mind, this genre is my bread-and-butter.  I grew up on John Grisham, Mary Higgins Clark, and the like.  I’ve been reading these types of books since elementary school.  There were so many misses, almosts, and just-shys that I just became frustrated.  But I persevered. 


The last quarter or so of the book is where all the good is—the meat of the story.  I’m not one to really enjoy a  book that is mostly introduction and background.  It bothers me to spend so much time “meeting and greeting” then rushing the plot to conclusion.  And that is what this felt like.


I understand that there was necessary background.  I understand that you needed history on the characters.  Yet, even with so much insight into them, I became very frustrated with them.  Dan was borderline idiotic, dense, and blind.  I figured things out way before he and Nina did, with the same information.  I just don’t see how he’s some hot-shot lawyer—he just didn’t keep up.  I also didn’t like how quickly Dan and Nina escalated their relationship. 


{Spoiler Alert} There is a major dose of reality, which I like.  Things don’t work perfectly for the hero and heroine.  But things are skewed so much that it quickly becomes unrealistic.  It irritated me that Mitzner stacked the odds against Dan and Nina so much.


There are twists, some you’ll see coming from miles away, others will stop you dead in your tracks, slapping you so hard you lose your breath.  There was some good storytelling.  But, I feel all the good came too little, and too late.


The ending leaves me feeling like Dan is a coward.  I don’t think Mitzner wanted him to appear that way.  And that’s sad to me, because once again, there was a missed opportunity.  I wanted to root for him, instead I was left shaking my head.

2 Moons out of 5